The column by George Will on political ignorance was important. We get the government we deserve. Our economic and education policies have created a nation of mindless riff-raff. Our voters can name TV and sports figures, but not justices and congressmembers. Our elections seem to resemble sports coverage.

My concern is that this appears to be by design. A docile voting population is easier to govern. The rhetoric on economics and education does not meet our practices; more than 20 percent of our kids in this country live in poverty. Our media are run by a handful of corporations that tailor news coverage, limiting the flow of fair news coverage to our nation.

I enjoy intelligent, educated discourse on government and social matters from all sides of politics. There is no room for ignorance, arrogance and not voting intelligently.

The consequences are an ineffective and narrow-minded government.

Jim Olson, Edgewater

This letter was published in the Jan. 3 edition.

Once again, George Will parades the endless ideological prattle of the righteous upon us ignorant masses. They decry the “pretentious” ambition and overreach of government, all the while pretentiously and willfully dismissing the same in big business. I don’t suppose we would need “sprawling regulation” if it were not for sprawling greed, corruption, environmental degradation and gross injustices that perpetually follow in the wake of “free markets.” Not once has the fantasy of “self-regulation” ever proven profitable or effective for anyone except the wealthy.

If only all of us ignorant types would just abrogate our voting rights to unbridled capitalism, I am sure the consequences, complexity, centralization and intrusiveness of government will be eliminated by bigger, socially sensitive corporations.

Keith Ruckhaus, Littleton

This letter was published in the Jan. 3 edition.

How can George Will limit his charge of “political ignorance” to voters only, when our legislators, state and national, seem equally ignorant of the content or consequences of many unread bills, even those which they sponsor?

Russell W. Haas, Golden

This letter was published online only.

To stimulate my own bipartisanship and to prove to myself that I can parse the most obtuse, inscrutable editorial writing on Earth, I regularly read George Will’s columns. His piece on “political ignorance” could have been written by Alexis de Tocqueville, the 1800’s French writer-historian. In “Democracy in America,” de Tocqueville in so may words said the eventual failure of America’s democracy would be the dumbing down of the electorate leading to inevitable anarchy. Alas, could he have been prescient?

Dave Hunter, Boulder

This letter was published online only.

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Shane Martin checks out the grow room after buying recreational marijuana at 3D Cannabis Center in Denver on Jan. 1. Colorado became the first U.S. state to allow the sell of recreational marijuana. (RJ Sangosti, The Denver Post)

Regardless of one’s political, social or recreational leanings, cannabis legalization is inarguably the most prominent local story in the past year. To bury it in The Post’s back pages would be not only ludicrous, but irresponsible.

Yes! Enough! I opened the paper once again on Wednesday to yet another article about pot dominating the front cover. I went straight to the editorial page to locate The Post’s e-mail because a response had to be made. And what do I find? A fellow reader who has also had enough. If this is to continue, perhaps you should remove the “s” from your newspaper’s name and just call it as it is.

Cynthia Tolbert, Littleton

This letter was published in the Jan. 3 edition.

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